Modern Salon - July 2008 - (Page 62)

YOUR BUSINESS Summer Blockbusters Beat the summertime slump and try something new to pack the house. By Victoria Wurdinger A few years back during boom times, salon owners said dogdays slowdowns were at an end. But with an economic downturn, things have flipped again. To keep stylists busy during July and August—and year ’round—it’s more important than ever to bring something new to the table—and the chair. Get started with style. The coolest offthe-neckline crops and personalized color that goes beyond the box make you stand out fast. Then, make the business sing. Most salons have already cut costs and worked on keeping their current clientle. Next up: Exciting promotions that bring in new clients. If you’ve got an antsy staff with downtime, it’s time to do a photo shoot. According to Theresa McGaha, owner of Moutons in Grapevine, Texas, nothing satisfies the staff and brings in new clients more than sending photos of your latest work to the newsstand “style selectors.” “We use our photo shoot work everywhere, and it always brings in the clients,” says McGaha. “When they appear in magazines like Cut and Color or Celebrity Hairstyles, clients come in with the photos, asking for the looks. “We also use the photos on our website for direct mail pieces and in television commercials. For the latter, we created a collage of our photos and added music. We even paid to have a slide show of our work shown at the local movie theater, before the film.” For targeted mailing, (for instance, to promo a special on the highlights of summer), McGaha uses her database to eblast only the blondes—the ones most likely to respond. The Happening At L Salon in San Mateo, California, owner Elizabeth Stenstrom relies on a marketing pro to send thank yous to new clients, along with a gift certificate for a service they didn’t get the first time around. In her version of a red-carpet event, she holds a “Day of Beauty” on Mondays, when the salon is closed, and throws a premiere party for her best clients. “The entire staff volunteers, our best clients get to bring their friends and everyone gets free services,” says Stenstrom. “Ninety percent of our clients’ friends come back, and the event pays for itself because they all buy products.” The new guests are encouraged to prebook appointments, which fills the chairs for weeks to come. Clients who make referrals to L Salon also receive gift certificates in the mail. Instead of telling everyone they get a reward for a referral, it’s sent as a surprise, which gives it extra “they-thought-of-me” impact. Everyone loves an event, which Xena Parsons does up New York-style at her namesake salon. Her Glamour Blowout 10 includes Friday night “mock-tails,” ultragirlie decorating (boas, chandeliers and crystals) and a 20-minute styling lesson from the salon’s in-house blow dry diva. “Then, we give them the tools and they blow dry their own hair, with guidance from our staff,” says Parsons, who maintains a two-participants-for-everystylist ratio. “We use our young team members, who are already very experienced in blow drying. Last week, we had a group of 10 from Smith Barney. One of our clients who works there brought them all in, and we had real cocktails this time, since they were all friends.” Parsons charges $40 per attendee, and for the women of Smith Barney, she partnered with her cosmetic company, Beauty Addict, so that while five were at styling stations, the other five got make-up lessons. “Our retail was huge that night; we sold continued on 64 62 JULY 2008 www.modernsalon.com http://www.modernsalon.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Modern Salon - July 2008

Modern Salon - July 2008 Contents Behind the Cover Notebook Contributors @Modernsalon.com New-Now-Next Modern Portfolio Modern Reports Ask the Experts Summer Blcokbusters Chem Lab On Trend My Process Ask Beth Your Makeovers Feel the Beat Shanghai Express Sweet 15 Modern Hair Modern Beauty Modern Education The Goods Personal Style

Modern Salon - July 2008

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